The Trail of Destruction

The Trail of Destruction

A Reporter's View

A more impressive picture of wreck, ruin, suffering and death than the one which met the eyes of a reporter of the Picayune day before yesterday, as he completed a ride of nine miles through a driving rain, and brought the tired plantation horse to a halt where one of the most prosperous business houses In Lockport once stood, would be difficult to Imagine. Everywhere was broken timber, shattered residences and demolished stores. Men stood gazing at their fallen homes. Women were busy collecting their broken household effects, and children. childlike, found amusement In the misfortunes of their parents and friends.
Often many persons on the road, nine of every ten were crippled in one way or another. Men carried their arms in slings, while others hobbled along by means of impromptu crutches, until, after driving a short distance, the reporter became accustomed to the usual bandage, And found it strange to see a person who had not been hurt. As soon as the terrible news of the . tornado had been received at the Picayune office, a reporter was detailed to go to the scene, and arrived at Raceland station, on the Southern Pacific Road, about noon the next day. After riding through a cane field on the mammoth plantation, the picturesque bayou Lafourche was reached. The day was as disagreeable as one could Imagine. The cold wind brought a driving drizzle from the north, which In the course of an hour took the form of a teeming rain. On the bayou, from one of the overseers of the Raceland plantation, a horse and little jumper were obtained, and the long ride to Lockport began. Going down the left side of the bayou, far out in the fields could be seen the battened cane. Acres and acres of beautiful crops have been ruined, and many other acres of cane have been prostrated. bat it is hoped that the line weather will raise some of it There was no great damage done by the storm on the plantations above Lockport. Mile after mile of the miserable muddy road was slowly gone over until far ahead could he seen a twisted tree. This was the out post, as it were, of the extensive damage and terrible loss that lay only a short distance beyond.

The jumper was stopped at a large raised cottage on the roadside, which had been the turning point of the tornado. The wind had crossed the village diagonally and made a complete curve around this house and was lost at the left bank of the bayou. There the death-dealing cloud next touched the earth, or what other wrecks were caused by it. Is not known. An old negro who was-picking tip pieces of lumber that bad been carried by the wind from the convent, half a mile away, said that he had seen the cloud after it passed the town. It was In the form of a black funnel and brought With it a roaring noise. This noise had not been heard but a very short time before the wind struck the town and the many inhabitants had taken refuge in their homes from the rain, that had fallen through the two preceding days. The extreme bad weather forcing the people Into their houses, made the loss of life and Injuries more numerous than they would have been under different circumstances.

The trees in the yard where the raised cottage stood were twisted oft at the roots. On the left side of the house, nearest to Lockport, were five large pecan trees. All the branches were twisted off, and the strong old trunk stood bare as a pole. In the rear of the cottage where the tornado passed, the same destruction was found. In the yard near the front irate was the roof of an outhouse that had been swept across the bayou. An oak tree, spilt In half, lay near the back steps, and the stable, a short distance from the main house, was a complete wreck. The tornado, as it passed, exerted terrible suction power, and heavy objects within a hundred feet were drawn from their , fastenings and swept out into the fields, The rear gallery of this home had been pulled from the house and lay all in a heap in the yard. . The occupants rushed to the door, impelled by curiosity, and, calling the men to the gate, the reporter heard from one his story of the wind. He said that his name is Joseph P. Tarr, and he is the father of six children. He and his entire family were in the house at the time. The wind came all in a rush, bringing with it the noise of the falling buildings a short distance away. The trees snapped off like matches, and were picked up by the wind and sent past the house with horrible rapidity. The outhouses and stable were the next to go and the loud cracking noise told that the back gallery was being broken off The house was shaking like a leaf, and the family was terrified. Mother and babies lay prostrate on the floor, fearing that the next minute would find the place dashed to pieces. The rattling of the house smashed all the window panes, and the crockery In the dwelling was cracked and shattered into little pieces.

Just above the house, on the road, a blue flannel shirt, stained red with blood, told a tragic story. The shirt bad been discovered on a wire fence, after the wind bad passed, but as yet its unfortunate wearer had not been found. The crippled inhabitants hare been so busy attending to their own wounded that they cannot say whether any one is missing or not.

Leaving this home, the reporter drove a short distance where a pile of barrels marked the spot where once the large cooper a bop owned and operated by G. D. Barrios stood. Mr. Barrios now lies at death's door from wounds received from the storm.

There were 1800 barrels stored In the building, besides a lot of staves and hoops. The building, which was made entirely of wood, had been lifted up and taken from the barrels In a complete condition. After it had been raised In the air several feet the wind pulled one plank off of after another, until within a few seconds the cooper shop passed behind Mr. Tarr's residence in fragments.

Next to the shop was a small cane field. In this field are strewn planks, timbers, pieces of trees and barrels. It is said that two miles back in the woods can be found timber and barrels. On the other side of the cooper shop was a store. This building was but slightly damaged, which showed that the width of the tornado was very narrow. A short distance beyond is the old Company canal and the remnants of the brick locks used years ago. These towers of brick served very effectually in stopping the furniture and wreckage that came from the other side of. the bayou. At the cooper shop were a number of men picking up lumber that had been lifted over the levee, from where a number of carpenters are busy building a flatboat. One of them, Victoran Boutarie, had his hand bandaged up, and in answer to the reporter's questions, said that he lived on the other side of the bayou and was in his house at the time the' storm struck the place. A large piece of timber bad been driven through the roof, and coming down struck him on the hand. The post was seen later and was standing upright. This was the only injury the man received. He pointed out to the reporter the place where the old ferryman, Isadore LeBlanc, had fallen with his cottage. The building stood on the edge of the levee, and the right bank of the bayou. The ferryman had taken refuge here from the rain, and the wind coming lifted the house clear off the foundation and carried it across the bayou, throwing it out in the field some few hundred feet from the bayou. Thus, as the injured man said in broken English, "The first thing he knew he find himself In the field. He cross In the house In the air, not In the boat on the bayou." The strangeness of this fact seemed to have a great deal of amusement in it for the man, for he laughed heartily.

Back of the field, next to the cooper shop, were the remnants of an old negro church. A greater part of the roof has been broken In and a big timber stands upright near the cross at the apex of the roof. The window glasses are all broken, and two of the window frames have been pulled out.

The loss on the cooper shop will be very heavy, as it was quite an extensive building. The Barrios Brothers expect to lose from the wrecking of this building about $30,000.

Below the Company canal Is a large store. The front of the roof has been completely carried off. A young man came out of the damaged building and said that his father, Mr. Louis LeRille, owned the place. His name is Nelson LeRille, On the morning of the storm he was standing at the front door when be saw far over the bayou, a black cloud coming In lie direction of the house with wonderful rapidity. His first thought was of a cyclone, and he started on a run for the rear of the building. His brother, Arthur, and his brother-in-law, Alfred Mosse, were standing out in the road under a tree where horses are tied. The wind came upon them before they could move, and Mosse was thrown down. Arthur LeRille was held by the wind and could not move. The wreckage from the convent was beginning to cross the bayou and the timbers fell everywhere. Among the trash was a number of slates. One of these struck young LeRille on the left hand and tore off two of his fingers. Mosse was not hurt. While these two men were standing in the road, as If rooted to the spot, they saw the roof of their home carried away. The wind struck the house in the front, at the left end. and lifted the elates and hurled them into the bayou. The end of the roof followed and the entire side was soon gone.

The left hand side of the roof was lifted up next and carried out and fell in fragments into the bayou. The house was left, within a few seconds, in a wrecked condition. At the time a number of the family were in the upper story, but through some unaccountable way they all escaped uninjured. The lower part of the house was not damaged, simply the roof was carried off. A building not more than 30 feet away was not touched. This is another illustration of the fact that the tornado was not very wide In diameter.

The jumper was taken across the bayou on the ferry once manned by the poor fellow, who had been carried 500 yards away. Driving up the incline the reporter came in contact with a number of crippled men who were waiting for the ceremonies of the burial of the two sainted sisters to begin.

Here the scene of ruin was more distressing than on the other side of the bayou. In the distance one could see a pile of lumber which was pointed out as the convent. On the side of the bayou Just left was a tall pile. This had been one of the tillers of a flatboat lying alongside of the bayou's banks. It had been pulled off by the wind, lifted high In the air, and split clean in half. One half had been driven into the earth as straight as could have been done by man, and the other part bad been carried far off into the woods. On top of the levee. Just where the vehicle came up from the ferry, was the spot where the old ferryman had his shanty. Nothing was left but the little steps leading to the doors.

Just in front of this little building Is the wrecked store owned by Gustavo Barrios. The entire southward side of the building and the left side of the roof had been carried off. A side of a roof had been lifted from a neighboring building and placed in its proper petition on Barrios' store. The south side of the weather boarding's had been completely swept away, and a canvas had been placed in their place to protect the stock. On the other side of the road, which is known as Lafourche street, was where the Welcome Saloon once stood. Now there Is nothing but an Immense pile of debris. This saloon was owned by C. J. Richard. He was In the place at the time. The wind attracted his attention, and he started off for the door, but before he reached it the tornado had struck the building. Timbers began falling everywhere, and he managed to reach the street. Being free from the building, he started to run and was thrown off his foot by the wind. A large piece of timber fell from the roof across the poor fellow's back and knocked him insensible. He was found later in the day with his face buried in the gutter and an ugly wound, bleeding freely, in his left side.

The doctors examined his wounds and found that three ribs had been broken and pressed into the man's body, cutting terribly his internal organs. He now lies very ill In the residence of a kind hearted neighbor. George Fretsch, a clerk la the store, was behind the bar it the time, and, seeing his employer making for the door, started to run himself. The timbers had begun to drive through the roof and lay in heaps about the desperate man. He fought his way bravely through the wreck and reached the door just as the roof caved in. When he reached the street the greater part of the wind had passed and he ran to the assistance of his employer. Picking him up, he carried Richard to the residence of Mr. Gustave Barrios, which had not been touched by the tornado. Here he left him and made his way through the wind, rain and wreckage to where timbers were In a terrible condition, and did what he could to assist them. He had been struck on the bead by falling timbers and was badly cut.

The Barrios store was a scene of most exciting incidents. Emanuel Barrios, one of the brothers, was in the front of the store on the wrecked side when the wind struck it. In this part of the building is the post office. Mr. Barrios is the postmaster, and was attending to his morning mail when the storm came upon him. His first thought was to get free, and he started In a run for the side door. This door was on the south side and the wind was blowing at a terrific rate. He grabbed hold of the door. Although he tugged with all his might, it would not open. Finally the side of the house caved In, and he ran out into the open street. A bolt of calico flew from its shelf and wrapped itself around his head. He could not see a thing, and did not know where to turn. Guided, as it were, by Providence, he reached the street, only to be prostrated by flying timbers. One of these struck him on the lower part of the leg and tore the flesh away from the bone. He has recovered wonderfully from the shock, and is able to hobble about

Harris Fontenelle, a clerk in the store, came from the town of Plaquemine some time ago. He was also in the same part of the building and ran for the same door. Just as he reached it a timber struck the opening and blocked the door. He was desperate. There was no other way for him to get free, and becoming frantic with fear, he made one last attempt to get out of the building. This time he was successful and reached the street. The first man be saw on reaching the street was George Fretsch, lying in the gutter. The rain had long since flooded the street and the poor fellow lay, with Mr. Richard, in half a foot of water. He started for the men and picked up Fretsch, who soon regained his consciousness and helped to carry Richard into the house. Mr. Edgar Barrios, in some way, was thrown out into the street and also lay in the gutter. The men went to his assistance. He was found in a pitiable condition. His side was bruised and be was bleeding from the head. He was also taken into the house back of the store. His wounds were examined by Drs. Gazzo and Knobloch and pronounced critical. Night before last he had improved a little and was resting easily, but was not out of danger. The store, which was one of the largest in the town, is a complete wreck. The entire roof is gone and one side has been swept away. What little stock that was not carried away by the wind has since been ruined by the rain. His loss at the store is estimated at several thousand dollars. The residence is directly in the rear of the store and adjoins it. This was not damaged in the least, and it is an act of mercy that It was not, for here all the wounded have been cared for at one time or another, and the bodies of the killed have been dressed and buried from this humble little home. Every one In the stricken village has been as good to his neighbors as he could have been. There is not a house in the town that has not some poor cripple as its guest. Leaving the Barrios store, the reporter found his way among the debris to where the Welcome Hotel stood. There Is nothing now to mark the spot but a mammoth pile of timber, slates, bricks and broke furniture. At the time of the tornado Mrs. Richard, wife of the hotel proprietor, and her entire family of five children wore in the hotel. She was found at the residence of a neighbor, and between the painful groans, told her simple story. She and her children were In the center of the building, on the second floor, when the wind came. She had had no warning of the approaching tornado, and had no time to get out. As soon as the wind struck the hotel, it shook terribly. She gathered her young ones near her and started for the stairs. Mother like, she would not leave before she had been certain that the little children were safe. They reached the door leading to the stairs, it shook, and with a crash fell, and blocked the way. How she managed to get to the floor below, she cannot say. It all came to quickly and passed so quickly that she was thrown into a state of wild excitement She and the children arrived in the street after the greater part of the storm had passed. Rushing out of the room on the lower floor, she reached the street, only to be struck on the head by a falling brick. Reeling, she fell, and falling, dropped the baby. Quickly the little thing was caught up by the wind and carried out towards the levee Oliver Revet, a barber, who had his shop a few doors from the hotel, had also rushed out of the building, and seeing the baby being carried away towards the bayou, ran after it. He had Just picked up the little thing and renewed his running, when a large timber from the hotel struck him lengthwise on the head. His skull was mashed in, and he fell in the muddy road, across the baby, dead. His body proved to be the preserver of the child, and when picked up, long after the storm, the little child was unharmed. It did receive a cut on the head, but it was very slight, and supposed to have been done by the fall In the street. The baby and mother were seen by the reporter when he visited the desolate village. The baby Is a little thing scarcely more than a year old. The body of the barber was terribly crushed, and had to be buried in the clothes he wore at the time. After he had been picked up from the water flooded street, he was taken to the residence of Mr. Barrios, and from there was buried early Friday morning, In the little graveyard back of the Catholic church. His funeral was simple, and beautiful in its very simplicity, everyone In the town who was able to walk attended the burial of this hero, and the good father prayed for the repose of his soul.

Next to the hotel, towards the convent, stood a little one-story cottage that has been occupied by an Italian by the name of Peter Paccllugi. He went to the town several months ago, and made a living by selling fruit. His house being between the hotel and the barroom, was not very greatly damaged. Simply the roof was carried away. He escaped with but slight bruises about the body und arms. A little farther on is what is left of the home of Mr. G. Abribat. He was in the house with his wife and seven children. The storm, after leaving the convent, struck this house and tore away the entire front and roof. A large piece of timber was sent crashing through the roof, and striking Mrs. Abribat, cut her in the thigh and shoulder. One of the babies was also injured about the body. Mrs. Abribat was taken out from among the wreckage and carried to a residence of a neighbor, where she received the medical attention of the four doctors, who had to be present throughout the terrible scene. Her condition, when seen by the reporter, was considered critical, but not absolutely fatal. She painfully showed her wounds, and they were truly sickening to look upon. The little baby was also seen, and the cut on it looked dangerous. Mrs. Abribat could tell but little of the tornado. She was in the center of the house, which Is a cottage, and the wind came upon her. The house fell with a crash and she and the children were buried under the debris.

At the corner of the street next to the convent, and facing the levee, was the office of Dr. Bourgeois, a dentist. He was at the time in Morgan City, but Mr. Luke Bourgeois was attending to the business. As soon as he heard the convent falling piece by piece, he ran into the street and escaped. What became of the house, no one can say. Simply the foundation is left now. In leaving the place Mr. Bourgeois was cut on the arm by falling slates, and received a bruise about the head. His condition is not serious. The dentist chair was hurled far away and a piece fell on the gallery of the Feys Hotel, several squares back from the levee, and a distance of some five hundred yards.

In the Welcome Hotel, at the time or the storm, besides the family of Mr. Richard, were two ship carpenters from Algiers. One of them, Albert Cuny, had a most wonderful escape. He was up stairs at the time, reading. The wind struck the house, blowing off the roof and carrying him over the top of the levee and dropping him into bayou Lafourche. His face was cut by falling slates, but he started out pluckily and swam to shore. Sidney Dannar, the other carpenter, who went to Lockport with Cuny to help build a flatboat, was also In the building. He In running out of the place, was slightly injured by the rain of timbers and bricks. In coming down the stairs he was hurt In the back by the falling walls.

Back of the Welcome saloon was the residence of Isidore LeBIanc, the ferryman. His little home was broken in, roof and all, and he was almost buried by the debris. The house next to it had the lower floor of brick. The wind struck it from the rear, carrying off its roof and throwing it all In a heap In front of the dwelling. The timbers smashed the front shed, and but a few feet of the cover is left. Doors were pulled off their hinges, window frames taken out of the house and swept across the bayou, in front of the house was a table, which some one said had been carried from the parlor of the convent. All around the building was scattered the timbers from the neighboring houses, and a cistern had been rolled from a house two squares away. No one was hurt in the house, because, fortunately, they were on the other side of the street. Strange to say, the tornado, after striking this dwelling, shifted its course and traveled diagonally across the street, where it struck the Barrios store.

The residence of Emanuel Barrios, the building swept away, was just opposite the dwelling of G. D. Barrios, where the sisters and other persons killed in the storm were buried. The wind came from the southwest, struck the convent, shifted a little to the west and tore away the Barrios residence, and then traveled directly towards the bayou, where It smashed the Barrios store and the Welcome saloon. The Welcome Hotel is supposed to have been torn down by the puff of wind that carried away the convent. It then crossed the bayou diagonally carrying the ferryman's cottage with it, and on reaching the opposite side swept away the roof of the LeRille store and the Barrios cooper shop. After that it traveled through a cane field and around Tarrs residence and was lost in the bayou above the village. Far back in the village and beyond the convent was round a house which had been lifted from Its foundations and was standing on edge. The effect of the weight on one side of the house forced It Into the shape of a diamond and damaged the house to such au extent that it will have to be torn down. The house Is owned by Tayor Tupso, but no one was injured, as they were all away at the time. Diagonally across the street is the old fashioned dwelling of the good Father LeTilly, who is now in France. This building was picked from its foundation and set flat on the ground.

The house itself was not injured much. Next to the priest's residence is the old house formerly used as the convent. This was in perfect condition. On the same side of the street, but farther down towards Raceland, Is the house of Captain P. G. Alleman, formerly one of the pilots of the steamer St. John. The wind wrecked his kitchen, but did not touch the residence, although that building is but a few feet away. Thomas Barker. a veteran of the confederate army and a private under Colonel Vincent, of this city, said that his house was next to Captain Alleman's residence. He was in the garret at the time reading, and heard the increased noise of the wind, and looking out saw a terrible looking black cloud coming down upon him. He was rooted to the spot with fear, and watching the cloud he saw It strike the convent, pull piece after piece of timber from that large building and with a crash like thunder fell every loosened beam, and the wind passed on to the next building. He saw that go, and another, and still another, and then the entire place became black as Ink and the rain came down in perfect torrents. When asked what the storm sounded like, Mr. Barker replied, it made more noise than thirty box cars running over a narrow gauge road." This description seemed to suit him perfectly, for he would give no other.

The most pitiful story told by any of the injured was told by Sisters Joseph and Anastasie. They were both found it at the residence of Mr. Ferdinand Barilleaux, where they had been taken on the morning of the terrible storm. Neither of the good women could speak a word of English, and as the reporter could not speak a word of French, he had great difficulty in getting their statements. Sister Anastasie was found on a cot, suffering dreadfully. In her. sweet manner she said that she was in one of the front rooms on the gallery. The room faced the south and was next to the chapel on the second story. Sister Joseph was with her. Judging from all she could remember, it was between 9 and 10 o'clock in the morning. It had been raining hard for several days and every one kept within doors on that account. The first she knew of the approaching storm it had struck. the side of the building she was in. The house began to shake, and rocked to and fro several times. She had been sitting down before and at the arrival of danger jumped up and made her way across the rolling floor to the door. The. floor by that time was pitching like a ship at sea. She reached the door in safety. Struggling to hold her feet, she caught the knob and tried her best to open the door. It swung outward, and, being on the exposed side, could not be opened by so slight a woman. There was nothing left for her to do. This was the only door and this she could not open. The agony the poor woman suffered must have been intense. She ran about the room to search of some other means of escape, but found none. Returning to the door she made another desperate attempt to get out into the open air, bat again she failed. Holding on to the door she could feel the floor giving way. The roof began to crumble and fly off in pieces, and one of the big beams fell through the roof on top of her shoulder. The pain was terrible, but she stood like the pure and true woman she is, and when the final test of courage came it found her ready and willing to meet the worst. The entire building made one terrible lurch and fell all In a heap, carrying with It the four sisters. This was all she remembers. Timber and bricks fell upon her and when she was dug from out the wreck her left hip and hands were cut and bruised terribly. The cut on her face was bleeding very much and the loss of blood was weakening her very rapidly. For hours after being removed to the house where the reporter found her she lay at death's door. Insensibility lasted for hours, but finally, after earnest work of the doctors, she came to and the wounds were dressed. She feebly told what she knew of the death of Sister Lucie and Sister Pulcharle.

Sister Louise was in the parlor on the ground floor, towards the south. She had gone there to play on the piano, and at the very time the storm struck the building she had begun the sweet notes of one of her favorite pieces. The storm increased and she continued to play. The music rose and fell, and through the terrible discord of the screaming tornado could be heard up the stairs the melodious music of the player. How she was killed cannot be said. She was found under a pile of debris, with her head mashed into a jelly, and her body terribly cut and bruised. Her remains were taken to the residence of Mr. Barrios, where they were prepared for burial. Sister Pulcharie, the loving mother of the institution, was at the time in the recreation room with ten young girl pupils. The children were having a little amusement, as the day was so bad, and the good sister was there to care for them. Her death Is one of the saddest incidents of the terrible tornado. She was loved by all who knew her, and was most devoted to her life's calling. The recreation room was in the rear of the building, on the south side, and even now can be found books that were being read by the little ones when the dreadful storm came upon them. In the room was the little girl Mabel Gauthreaux who was numbered among the killed, Urani Ayo and Ella Aucoin. The storm came, the little ones cannot tell how, but the first thing they knew the house had caved in, and they lay under heaps of lumber and brick. Little Urani Ayo says that she was In the center of the room at the time and felt the house go under. She saw Sister Pulcharie fall to the floor, struck by something big, and the little girl Gauthreaux was near her then. She did not see Mable Gauthreaux when she fell, but after the house had gone under she felt the dead child not more than half a foot away, Her face and body had been most horribly emptied, and death must have come Instantly. Urani was injured Internally, but, not dangerously, so the doctors say. Ella Aucoin was also internally hurt. They were both taken out of the building and carried to the residence of her father. A. H. Ayo, which is not more than a hundred feet away. Friday evening, when the reporter visited the house they were both doing well. The, injuries on the little Aucoin girl which seemed to give the most trouble were about the eyes and hips.

The female servant. Elvier Falgout, who was also killed, was in the kitchen at the time of the storm, and when found she had not moved a foot from the stove. So sudden was the blow to the building that she did not have the slightest chance to move. When found, the bricks and lumber had crushed her face almost beyond recognition. The woman was French, and had come from France some years ago. She bad been connected with the convent at Labadieville from the mother institution. Her death was instantaneous. She like the others, was taken to the residence of Barrios, and from there she was burled.

Sister Anastasie had received a very ugly cut over the left side of the head and the flesh on the left forearm had been torn for several inches, while the flesh on the right hand had been cut almost to the bone. Across the room, In another bed, was Sister Joseph suffering from an ugly gash In the side of her hip, a bruise over the ribs and a jagged tear of the flesh of the right arm. The little girl Gauthreaux, she said, had come to the convent on the 31st of the month of August from the town of Schreiver where she lived, with her father, Mr. Henry Gauthreaux.

Sister Joseph was In the same room with Sister Anastasie, and went through the same terrible experience. During the morning of Friday Mother Agnes, from the local Institution, and Sister Gabriel, in answer to the telegram sent them the day before, arrived in the storm-beaten village by the same train as the reporter. They went Immediately to work with their good work, and soon made themselves loved by all who were fortunate enough to come in contact with them.

A visit was paid to the convent, and the sight that met the reporter's eyes was touching In the extreme. The handsome structure lay in a scattered mass of broken lumber and broken brick. The lower floor had been lifted from the foundation and set on the naked earth some ten feet back. For hundreds of yards were strewn the clothing of the nuns and pupils and part of a bed lay half a mile down the road. Furniture, school books and every thing Imaginable could be seen among the piles of debris. The cistern was turned over and the water had flooded the recreation room There was nothing but smooth planks here, and many dark red spots, that marked where some innocent child or some good nun had been cruelly injured by the storm. A white marble top of a table showed the site of the parlor and the death scene of good Sister Lucie. The table was found near Barrios store some distance away. The kitchen was visited and the blood stained planks where the French servant lost her life were found. It was a story of horror, terrible to imagine. The sun was sinking in the west when the reporter turned from the scenes of wreck and ruin and walked to the peaceful bayou. Far up the road could be seen a long procession marching slowly down towards the church. It was the funeral of the two nuns. Sister Clair, who had been slightly Injured in the convent, had joined Mother Agnes and Sister Gabriel and was part of the sad little procession. At the church, under the willows, one of the most Impressive sights one could ever see was beheld. Fully 500 men, with uncovered heads, stood sorrowfully around their good priest. On the walk to the church were two benches. There the coffins were placed for the final blessing. The sun cast its vast rays through the mossy cypress trees and the distant bells rang softly the vesper as the coffin that contained the remains of Sister Pulcharie was lowered gently to the walk by half a dozen men. Mass was held In the chapel and the mourning column moved from the church to the little grave yard In the rear, where, in the sacred presence of the cross and In Its shadow and at its foot, they were buried. Never was a throng of men and women more deeply affected. Not a dry eye could be found in the crowd. Then the crowd departed and in the twilight the remains were left to the heart-broken sisters for a time, they In turn yielding to the night.

At 2 o'clock in the afternoon the little girl Mabel Gauthreaux was carried quietly out Into the same grave yard, waiting for the clay of the beloved women who had been her guides. There is no more pathetic spot In the state just now than Lockport. It may be truthfully said that in this happy town the "rich were, and the poor lived in abundance." All were happy in their simple way, and the grief so new to them has wrecked for years the advance which It was steadily making. It Is situated on the right bank of bayou Lafourche, In the parish of Terrebonne, at the very Intersection of the old company's canal. Once, years ago, it was a great trading center, and all the cotton and cane from that .part of the state came by the town through the canal. Now the locks are rusty with age, and the town has lost a great deal of Its prominence. Here the land is high, and the town has been laid out between a circle of forests. All around the village are the cypress swamps, and the land drains back to them. All streets run parallel and at right angles to the bayou. That part of the town near the crossing from the company's canal Is the most thickly settled, and was the most damaged. Gradually the population decreases, until, near the woods, there are but a few squatters. The place Is populated entirely by French people, and only very seldom one hears the English language spoken. Within the village there are some 800 or 1000 persons, and of these some thirty have been bruised and Injured dangerously by the cyclone. The Daily Picayune, (New Orleans, LA) Sunday, September 10, 1893; pg. 8; Issue 229; col A

Lockport La, Sept 7, A severe cyclone struck the pretty little town of Lockport on Bayou Lafourch at about 9 A.M. and left it a mass of ruins and desolation. Five persons were killed and many injured.

The Killed

BARBER, servant in the convent
GAUTHREAUX Miss MABEL.
LUCIA, Sister.
PULCHARIE, Sister.
REVEL, OLIVER.
Unknown man.

The Injured

ABRIBAT, GUS, of Ascension Parish; scalp wound, face and arms injured.
ABRIBAT, Mrs. GUS; shoulder fractured and internal injuries.
ANASTHASIE, Sister; head and hips injured.
AUCERN, Miss; Terrebonne; hip injured.
AYO. NETTIE; internal injuries; recovery doubtful.
BARBIOUX, EDWARD; wounded In breast and head.
FOREST, LOUISE; slightly wounded.
GEORGE, Mr., of Algiers; slightly wounded.
JOSEPH, Sister: hips injured

LE BLANC. ISADORE; ribs fractured; was carried by cyclone from one end of the bayou to the other.
RICHARD, CAMILLE; injured internally,and three ribs broken.
SEVILLE, ARTHUR; two fingers broken,which had to be amputated.
No serious results were apprehended until the wind shifted suddenly to the southwest and blew at a terrible rate, carrying everything in its path.' The fine store of W. G. Barrios was half destroyed, and all the goods were injured; the store and residence of Paul Meyer were completely demolished;. the residence of Q. Abritat, C. J. Richards's
residence and coffee house, Oliver Rivet's barber's shop, Isadore Le Blanc's residence,
G. D. Barrios's large cooper shop, the Convent of the Immaculate Conception, and Peter Pullucky*s fruit store were completely destroyed. A large portion of Louis Terrill's residence was destroyed. Many other buildings were badly damaged., The property loss in this city will approximate $100,000.

SCHRIEVER, La., Sept. 7.—A strong gale has been blowing here steadily since late yesterday evening, which has at this hour (6 P. M.) increased to a tornado. Fences, outhouses, and some small dwellings have been blown down and destroyed, and cane and rice considerably damaged. Mabel Gauthreaux, the little daughter of Mr. H. S. Gauthreaux of this town, was killed today while attending school near Lockport by the destruction of the. school house by the storm. Oliver La Pourse of Thibedeaux was instantly killed this evening near Raceland by falling timbers. September 8, 1893 New York Times

Back to Lafourche Parish Home